The 2022 Player of the Year returned to Kentucky for his senior season, and in turn, his wallet has grown. Boardroom breaks down his NIL earnings and deals.
This time last year, Oscar Tshiebwe was the talk of men’s college hoops.
After posting 17.4 points and a whopping 15.2 rebounds per game in 2021-22, Tshiebwe walked away with more hardware than ACE, securing consensus first-team All-American honors while also being named the National Player of the Year. With a banner year under his belt and the NBA calling, the man among boys on the glass opted to return to Kentucky for his senior season, but it wasn’t just a basketball decision.
Thanks to his stellar campaign, Tshiebwe had much to gain in the NIL space, despite dealing with certain limitations on his international student visa that prohibits him from making the same kinds of deals his counterparts can. During the team’s visit to the Bahamas over the summer, Tshiebwe was able to take advantage of being outside the United States and complete deals that he wouldn’t have been able to stateside. According to The Athletic, the big man earned roughly $500,000 in just a week there.
Since then, he’s been able to navigate the NIL hurdles that exist for him and sign certain deals that fit the parameters of his visa. Boardroom breaks down Oscar Tshiebwe’s NIL earnings and deals at Kentucky.
Oscar Tshiebwe NIL Market Value
All data via On3.com’s NIL rankings as of March 13, 2023.
College Basketball NIL rank: 3
Overall NIL rank: 25
10-week high: $915,000
10-week low: $87,000
The above monetary figures are via On3’s NIL Valuation, a proprietary algorithm that “establishes the overall NIL market and projected 12-month growth rate by measuring two categories, Brand Value Index and Roster Value Index.”
Notable Oscar Tshiebwe NIL Deals
Morgan & Morgan
As one of the largest injury law firms in the country, Morgan & Morgan decided to work with one of the biggest players in the country in Tshiebwe.
OK, so not just Oscar, but rather the entire Kentucky men’s basketball team. The firm struck a deal with the program last season when Tshiebwe was unable to participate due to his restricted visa, but this time around, he can reap the benefits. While the exact monetary value for each player is unknown, the partnership includes new digital billboards, TV commercials, and digital advertisements across social media.
WinStar Farm
Remember how Tshiebwe had to do all his NIL work in the Bahamas last year? Well, this partnership with WinStar Farm was one of those deals.
While the campaign is with WinStar, Oscar was mainly featured with the company’s racehorse, Life is Good. The commercial (seen below) might look familiar to sports fans, as it’s somewhat of a remake of the Nike “Bo Knows” commercials from the late ’80s and early ’90s.
Tshiebwe became the second UK athlete to partner with a racehorse on an NIL deal, as quarterback Will Levis also did so with Claiborne Farm’s War of Will.
Other notable deals: Walkaway Sports, 46Solutions
More NIL Deals:
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